One and the Same
by Lady Smoothie
Summary: PS 7 n/ cannon. Pike suddenly is having some very strange feelings and its up to the scoobie gang, the legion of slayers, and what's left of the Watcher's Council to help figure out what is going on. T for later violence and possible romantics later on.
1. Chapter 1

William slept.

He felt the power of his new, unnatural body coursing inside of him. He also felt an emptiness, which quickly dissipated. All that was left was the blood.

As he came into his power, he began to become more evil--possibly amplified by his still heightened human emotions. His list of victims steadily grew, and whispers began to circulate of the depraved new vampire with the bleach-blond hair and the railroad spikes.

Spike awoke.

**----**

Oliver Pike and his twin sister hid in the closet when the men came knocking on the door. Big, burly, and dangerous looking; Oliver had never seen them before. Quiet, likely trying to avoid the neighbors' attention, they broke down the front door and began to rummage, looking for something or someone.

"Ollie, why are they here?" his sister whispered, her voice reedy and tense.

"I dunno, but I'll keep you safe." he replied fiercely.

He could feel his heart speed up as the sound of footsteps circled the apartment. He tried to quiet his breathing, but whatever the reason, the footsteps eventually made their way towards the closet. The door creaked opened and a man reached in, his hand closing around the bony wrist of Oliver's little sister.

"Found you, little Faith. Time to come with us, we'll keep you safe."

But Oliver would have none of this. As the stranger began to tug on Faith's arm, he leaned forward and bit down, hard, on his thick arm. The man let out a yelp as Oliver waged his attack. He was on his own; his mom wouldn't do anything. She was passed out, as usual, on the couch.

Oliver fought as hard as he could, but it was no use. The other man quickly crossed to the closet and picked him up despite his struggles; the other finished fishing Faith out of the closet.

"FAITH!" Oliver screamed. No good.

The last thing he saw of her was her pink Power Ranger light-up shoes.

Once the man with his sister was gone, the man carrying Oliver knocked him out and fled. By the time he awoke, there was no sign of what had occurred except the broken lock on the front door.

For years, Oliver looked for his sister, asking questions, but no one had any answers. Eventually, he gave up, drowned himself in drinking.

Oliver Pike had been roaming the country for the last seven years, slaying demons and vamps. After so much time working on his own, he'd finally given in, joined the establishment: a regular, blue-collar Watcher. He had successfully been keeping his mind far from Buffy and Sunnydale. He'd been through the California town once on the trail of a demon, but after hearing there was a slayer in town he quickly skipped out. After all that had happened, he'd had no desire to see Buffy.

He'd kept himself busy with work. Now, after a long string of violent assignments, he was in Los Angeles, helping the vampire with a soul make sure the whole world didn't go to hell if Buffy couldn't stop all this first.

--

Spike could feel the amazing power from the amulet flowing through him and out into the hellmouth. As he stood there with this energy coursing through him, crackling over his skin, he briefly wondered what would happen to him.

He could feel the sun on his skin now, burning, but for the first time in over a hundred years it didn't hurt. For the first time in over a hundred years, he felt true bliss, true completion, in a way that even Buffy hadn't been able to provide for him.

He closed his eyes and let the light take him.

--

Pike stood ready for the possibility of a fight, tension ridging his muscles, when warmth suddenly filled him and light spread out from his center. He felt... _whole_ in a way he'd never experienced, but the feeling was driven by a sudden and intense pain. He was driven to the ground, and he was sure a whimper escaped him. An eternity later (though it was likely only a moment) he recovered; the pain dulled.

When he recovered his senses, Angel was crouched next to him. "Are you alright?" the vampire asked urgently, a hand on his shoulder.

"Fine," Pike said breathlessly. "Fine. I'm..." He pressed a hand to his forehead. "I've got to go." He stood suddenly and strode towards the door.

"Go?" Angel called after him. "Go _where_?!"

"Sunnydale!" Pike called over his shoulder. By the time the souled vampire tried to speak again, Pike was gone.

--

As he rode towards Sunnydale, Oliver Pike was thinking about his sister. He had been trying to keep her out of his mind, but ever since he'd met Buffy, back in high school, she'd flit across his mind. Sometimes his thoughts kept him awake, wondering if he would see her again. She had been taken when they was six, and as hard as he'd looked, he hadn't seen her since. Maybe Buffy or her new watcher would know something about her--maybe she was even with Buffy. But his hopes weren't high: so many potentials had been killed lately. Chances were, even if those men had kept her alive, she was now dead.

He'd been so lost in his own thoughts that he couldn't comprehend the sight that met his eyes as he reached his destination. There was a huge pit where Sunnydale should have been. He knew it was where Sunnydale should have been, because the sign was still there. As he drove by, it toppled and fell. He didn't see anyone around, just a school bus. He parked his bike in front of the bus and got off. Still in shock, he walked around the bus. A familiar blonde was standing there, her back to him. A man was facing her. "What did this?" he asked, and she had simply one word for him: "Spike."

Her voice was filled with pain, and something inside Pike's chest ached. It only grew; everywhere hurt, he felt like he was dying. _Did some demon get me?_ he wondered as he crumpled to the ground.

He must have made a noise as he fell, because Buffy spun around and Faith and Giles raced towards him. The girls froze. Faith saw a ghost of her Ollie in the man's face. It was the only thing she remembered from before her watcher took her. Buffy saw Pike, her high school love who had saved her from the mental institution. Giles, the only one who had run all the way to Pike's side, was trying to pinpoint the pain, but it seemed to be coming from everywhere. "Will you two wake up and help me?" he snapped. Faith pulled herself out of her trance, and helped Giles carry Pike onto the bus. They laid him over two of the seats. The pain seemed to be diminishing; a few moments later, he managed to sit up.

"What are you doing here, Pike?" Giles asked. "I thought the Council sent you to help Angel at the second front."

Pike rubbed his forehead and answered. "I don't know. I just knew I needed to come help. So I did. Apparently, you didn't need any help."

The driver was trying to turn the engine, but it just wouldn't work. "Actually, you wouldn't know anything about engines would you?" Giles asked, not really expecting an affirmative answer. What would Pike, a promising young Watcher, know about mechanics? Buffy, who had come followed them onto the bus to see if Pike was alright, snorted. When Giles looked at her questioningly, she just shook her head.

Pike looked up at her. It had been so long... She was as beautiful as ever. He'd been so afraid that he'd come here to find her hurt--or worse, to not find her at all, only to hear of her death. "Buffy..." he said slowly.

She shook her head. "Not now, Pike. It's been... it's been a long time, and it's been a hell of a day. We'll talk later."

He nodded once, sharply. Giles looked between them questioningly, but they had both gone stony-faced. He knew better than try to get anything out of Buffy when she looked like that. He sighed heavily.

Once Giles was satisfied that yes, the pain was gone, no, Pike didn't know what had happened, and no, Pike had had no idea the bus was here of what was going on, he reluctantly allowed the younger Watcher to get up and go look at the engine. Pike grabbed the toolkit off his bike and walked over to the hood of the bus. A few minutes later, he called out to Giles. "I think I found your problem. I think it stems from the giant hole in your hood, but that's just a preliminary guess." Giles laughed. "Okay, I think I can fix this, if I take my piece of shit bike apart and put it into the bus parts that are broken. But then I'd need a ride." Giles looked at Buffy, who nodded.

"I guess you could ride with us, at least until you get a bike running again."

So began Pike's work on the bus.

The engine wasn't running right by nightfall, so they all just slept on the bus. Close to morning Buffy was already awake, waiting for the sun to rise and everyone to rise with it. Pike was in the front of the bus, sleeping, when she heard him say "I'm drowning in footwear!" He sat up quickly and took a minute to gain his bearings, rubbing his face with an open hand. "Weird dream," he mumbled, curling back up on the seat.

Buffy was shocked. Just last night, Spike had been having the same dream, had said the same thing. That on top of Pike coming to Sunnydale randomly, and then the whole writhing in pain thing--something wasn't right here, and she was going to find out what it was.

--

FULL FIC DISCLAIMER If you recognize it, it isn't mine!


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning Pike finished the repairs, and they took off towards L.A. As they passed a field of daisies, one of the slayers made a joke about how hot Principal Wood was, and one of the other girls yelled "Shut up Faith, I don't want that image in my brain!" Pike's head snapped around to look at the girl. He stood up and looked at her. "Kiwi otter pop Faith?" Her face changed into an expression of shock. "Pink power ranger light up shoes Faith?"

She stood up "Ollie?! Big brother?"

Giles looked from one to the other, mouth agape. "That's impossible. I thought your name was Pike?"

Pike blushed "Well, my real name is Oliver, but the only person who ever called me that after they took Faith away was my mother."

"So you knew about slayers and vamps and everything when I met you in L.A.?" Buffy questioned him.

"No, but I knew there were monsters under the bed. Why do you think I drank so much? I didn't know there was anything I could do about them." Pike retorted. "Then I met you, and the memory of Faith getting taken away came rushing back. Marek had been there in the doorway, so I knew she must have been a potential slayer or something and started looking for her. After a few years of wandering aimlessly around, I was invited to join the Watcher's Council and started training for Watcher duty."

Buffy nodded. This was all very interesting to her, and she wanted to learn more about what he had been up to in the last couple of years. She was surprised to realize how much she'd missed him.

As everyone settled back into their seats and the bus began to move again towards L.A., Buffy pulled Giles into a seat with her. "What's wrong, Buffy?" he asked, straightening his glasses.

She bit her lip. "Giles... Is he really a Watcher? Does his story check out, or is there a chance he's just trying to hurt us?" she asked in hushed tones. She hated having to ask, but if the last few years had taught her anything, it was 'better safe than sorry.'

"Buffy, what makes you think he would want to hurt us? Of course he is a watcher. Do you think I would have let him on the bus otherwise? I knew who he was when he drove up. I've read his file and I helped train him some, when I was in England and you were...indisposed."

"Ah. Well, first there was the whole thing with him just showing up out of the blue, right after the explosion, then him collapsing. And the weirdest thing of all is that when he was asleep last night, he had the same dream Spike did the night before the battle. Could that mean anything?"

Giles frowned, but didn't bother to ask how Buffy had known what Spike was dreaming. He put a hand on her shoulder. "I don't know. I'll think about it, and get back to you later."

–

It would be a massive understatement to say that Pike was surprised to finally find Faith after all these years; he was ecstatic. But as euphoria wore off, a question remained: he had to decide if he would continue watcher training, or if he would quit to spend time with Faith? If he had Watcher training all the way through, then he might be able to help find other potentials families and reunite them, so that they could have the same joy he had. He could also stay here and protect Buffy, his love...Wait a second, where did that come from?

Pike shimmied up to the now empty seat by Giles. "I think something is affecting me. I've had some really weird...episodes lately. Like coming here. I was waiting with Angel. Then, there was this feeling... like being whole again. And then I just knew, I had to come here."

Pike frowned. "Like... a compulsion, almost. And when I got here, I collapsed from some sort of internal pain. Last night I had a dream that seemed like a slide show of events from over the years, ending with me drowning in footwear. Then just now, I got a feeling I haven't felt in seven years, and it felt much more recent. Any idea what is going on?"

Giles pondered. Suddenly, Pike and Buffy were both coming to him for advice. Could their questions be somehow related? They both stated many of the same incidents bothering them, about the same person. "I'll think about it for a while and if I come up with anything I'll let you know."

Well, this would be an interesting problem to solve.

–

**A/N: **Full Fic disclaimer: If you recognize it, it's not mine.


	3. Chapter 3

One and the Same: Chapter 3

Later that evening, their degenerate bus rolled into L.A. towards the Hyperion Hotel. By this time, many of the girls had fallen asleep, as well as Pike. Giles was mulling over the information Buffy and Pike had given him, but he could think of no explanation.

When the bus finally came to a stop in front of the Hyperion, Buffy got out and walked into the hotel while Willow started to wake the slumbering passengers. A few moments later, Buffy climbed back onto the bus. "Alright everyone, listen up." Once the group had quieted down, she began. "Angel is being really nice and letting us stay here until we get settled in. So you be nice to him and all his friends. Some of them are demons, but they're on our side, so play nice. Now go get some sleep everyone."

She turned around and walked back inside, this time with everyone following her in a tired line. Once she got inside, she stopped and began to direct people to various rooms. Soon all that was left were Angel and company, Buffy, Xander, Willow, Giles, and Pike.

Angel was the first to talk. "So where is Captain Peroxide? I didn't see him come in." For some reason, the face of his old comrade and the nickname for Spike both made Pike furious. He clenched his fists to keep himself from doing something he'd regret.

"He's gone." Buffy replied. "He died to save us all."

Angel's face contorted with guilt, which was enough to give Pike a strange feeling of satisfaction. What was wrong with him?

"Now, moving on to other business. I was thinking on the way over here of what the future is going to be like. There are lots more slayers out there now, because everyone who might have been a slayer is a slayer now, so I think we should maybe set up a few locations where we can train slayers and go on demon hunts as needed. We have a few problems, though, and most of them involve money. How will we get transportation, lodging, food, and weapons for all of these people?" Buffy asked, taking the lead.

"I can help with that," Giles spoke up. "Long ago the watchers set up a safety net, so that if they were destroyed, the funds they had at their disposal would be spread amongst the remaining watchers. As there are few of us left, between me and Pike we should have more than enough to help fund this school idea. Where were you thinking of starting?"

"I thought we could maybe go see Willow's friends in England and start there, maybe a farm or country house so we could have room to train. Maybe we could also train witches and watchers, anyone who wanted to be involved but isn't actually a Slayer." She paused to gather her thoughts. "Then we can go check out Cleveland and see how the Hellmouth there is shaping up. But it would be hard to take everyone with us… What if just some of us went, and then once we were sort of set up, a couple of people could stay there, a couple could go to Boston, and a couple could come back here and gather the rest. What do you guys think?"

After a few moments of silence, Angel was the first to chime in. "I think it's a really good idea Buffy. It could result in a lot of really powerful people though, and not all of them are going to be good."

"We'll work on making sure that doesn't happen. I think my evil Willow stories will prevent the majority of any witches we train from going evil, if not all of them." Willow added.

"What about training for how to live with being a magical beast of the night, like a werewolf? I know what I'm doing, I could help." A previously unnoticed figure stepped forward.

"Oz!" Willow exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"Just preparing to fight the apocalypse here in case you guys didn't do so great…and eating animal crackers."

Buffy cleared her throat. "So here is my idea for who comes on the prelim mission: myself, Will, Xander, Giles, Cordy, and Faith. And how about Oz and Pike?" Everyone seemed a little surprised when Buffy said his name, not the least of whom was Pike himself.

"Any objections? Maybe while we're gone, Angel and you guys could train the girls some? You all have different combat styles that they could really benefit from." Angel nodded. "Then we'll leave in the morning. Get some sleep you guys. Tomorrow's going to be a long day."

A/N If you are interested I have written a Harry Potter C/O with this that may just be a one-shot or it maybe will be continued in short chapters sporadicly, I havn't decided yet.


End file.
